


One More Chance

by BeStillMySlashyHeart



Category: Roswell New Mexico (TV 2019)
Genre: Fluff, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-14
Updated: 2019-02-14
Packaged: 2019-10-28 12:46:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,868
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17787671
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BeStillMySlashyHeart/pseuds/BeStillMySlashyHeart
Summary: Alex wished he could be surprised when his wandering feet took him to the junkyard.Or, Alex has a night of revelation and seeks out MichaelAKA the Malex Valentine's Day fic no one asked for





	One More Chance

“Why is it so packed in here?” Alex definitely did not whine. Liz shoved at his shoulder.

 

“We’re having Palentine’s Day drinks with our pals!” Maria answered him with a grin splitting her face.

 

Alex leveled her with a look at  _ Palentine’s Day _ but rolled his eyes. He’d always been weak when it came to these two. And Maria had been the one to organize the Wild Pony Palentine’s Day event to drag in all of the lonely residents in town. Which apparently included him. He had to ask anyway, “and we’re at the Pony with the rest of Roswell because…?”

 

“Because!” Liz answered, leaning in close so that she could be heard. “We need drinks! And the Pony’s got the best in town.” She added with a wink at Maria.

 

“But don’t you want to go somewhere else on your one night off?” Alex tried, appealing to Maria. She shook her head as she took a sip of her beer.

 

“I want to be where the people are!” Alex could tell she had started drinking well before he and Liz had shown up. “And besides, you really need to get out more.”

 

Alex looked away.

 

Maria grabbed his chin gently and made him face her and Liz. “You have been Mr. Mopey for too goddamn long. Have some fun! And who knows? Maybe you’ll meet a cute guy tonight.” She winked so suggestively that Alex had to laugh. 

 

“Alright, alright. I will stop complaining and start having some fun, okay?” He tilted his beer at Maria and then Liz. “But no more talk of cute guys, okay? At least not for me.” 

 

Liz opened her mouth but he put a hand over her mouth. She brushed him off, laughing as she answered. “Okay, fine. Stay single and boring!”

 

Maria left to get them another round of drinks for the table.

 

“Okay, hear me out and then I’m shutting up the rest of the night.” Liz started. Alex eyed her but nodded at her to go ahead. “There’s a guy, isn’t there? And things between you two are bad right now but not bad enough that you are willing to see other people.” She stated it like it was a fact, no doubt in her voice.

 

Alex thought about denying it but couldn’t quite bring himself to. He looked at her for a moment, seeing only sincerity in her eyes. Finally, he nodded. She reached across the table and squeezed his hand. “If you need or want to talk about it…”

 

“I know.” He told her, squeezing back. She smiled. 

 

“Well alright then. To a friend’s only Valentine’s Day!”

 

He fake coughed. “I think you mean Palentine’s Day?” They both laughed as Maria joined them again. 

 

“What’d I miss?” She asked as she passed around the drinks.

 

Liz eyed him briefly before opening her mouth but Alex cut her off. He was tired of secrets. “There’s a guy. And I kinda fucked it up but I don’t want to get involved with anyone else right now.” 

 

Maria only hummed in response and held up a shot. “Love sucks! To Palentine’s Day!” The other two echoed her toast and they all drank. 

 

Despite his original ill will towards the day, Alex found himself having fun. It had been a while since the three of them had gotten to just spend time together, enjoying themselves. Since he and Liz had gotten back into town, they’d both been busy with various obligations and their three schedules hadn’t quite lined up. 

 

Throughout the night, he found himself checking his phone almost unwillingly. He wasn’t expecting any messages. Except for the part of him that kept hoping he’d get something anyway. He tried not to be disappointed when there was nothing.

 

It was late when they finally called it a night. Alex had switched to water a while before so that he could drive home but he found himself leaving the bar on foot anyway. It had been a good night and part of him didn’t want it to end by going back to the cabin of mysteries he currently called home.

 

Alex wished he could be surprised when his wandering feet took him to the junkyard. There was a fire dying outside of the Airstream and a couple of chairs placed in front of it so Alex sat down. He was so close but he couldn’t quite bring himself to knock on the door. He knew there was a not insubstantial chance that Michael wasn’t alone in there and he didn’t want it confirmed for him. 

 

He wasn’t sure how long he sat there but the fire was mostly embers when the door to the Airstream swung open. Alex didn’t bother to look over. There was a long pause before he heard it swing shut again. Heavy footsteps came towards him and soon Michael was settling into the chair next to him. 

 

Neither said a word until the silence grew too tense. Alex knew Michael wouldn’t ask so it would have to be him.

 

“I kept checking my phone all night.” He felt Michael still beside him. “I know it’s crazy but - part of me kept hoping I guess.”

 

Michael sagged back in his seat. “What do you want from me, Alex?”

 

“I don’t know.” Alex answered him honestly.

 

“Well what do you know?” 

 

Alex paused. The fire had died enough for him to be able to see the stars above. He focused on them instead of Michael. “I know that today is a holiday. And I didn’t hear from you. And it bothered me. A lot.”

 

Michael shifted in his chair. Alex could imagine him running a hand through his curls. “Alex-”

 

“Ten years. Well closer to twelve if you think about it, but ten years I was gone. And every single holiday you would send me a text or an email. Even on Valentine’s Day. And I don’t know, it felt wrong not to hear from you today.”

 

He finally looked at him. Michael was staring at him with a raw expression, everything out there for him to see: the confusion, the frustration, the hurt, the  _ love _ . 

 

They’d never talked about it but while Alex was gone, he made sure Michael always had his contact information. Sometimes he’d get pictures from around town, sometimes it would be a random comment on something that had happened. Alex would try to respond with messages of his own but they were never conversations, per se. Just little updates on each other’s lives.

 

Except every holiday - every single one - Michael would send him a message wishing him a happy whatever holiday it was. Without fail. Every birthday, Christmas, New Year’s, Thanksgiving, Fourth of July, National Pancake Day, everything. But it was the Valentine’s Day messages that were Alex’s favorites. Those were the ones where Michael dropped the pen pal pretense they shrouded themselves in. Those were the ones where Michael would tell him something that he loved about him. Every single year, something new.

 

Michael’s email the first Valentine’s Day after Alex lost his leg was the first time after the accident that anything had made him  _ feel _ . 

 

But now that they were actually in the same place, he got nothing. And he knew it was his own fault but it was almost midnight and the day just felt incomplete.

 

At some point, he’d turned back to the stars, unable to hold Michael’s gaze anymore. He knew he was fucking things up between them. But he didn’t know how not to. Being in Roswell, being around his dad - it was messing with his head.

 

His phone buzzed in his pocket. Alex shifted in his seat to get it out without standing up and unlocked it to see a new message. From Michael.

 

Alex turned to look at him but now his face was turned upwards towards the stars. Alex looked back down at his phone.

 

_ You’re the strongest person I know. You’ve been through hell in more ways than one and you are still the man that I fell in love with ten years ago _

_   
_ _ Happy Valentine’s Day Alex _

 

Something in his chest loosened and he had to blink back tears. As he raised a hand to wipe at his face he realized he had made a crucial error. Every year before this, he had been hundreds or thousands of miles away from Michael when he got his messages. He didn’t have to sit next to the man while reading his words of love.

 

“What took you so long?” He tried to joke but it fell flat between them.

 

Michael finally looked at him. “You never responded anyways. Didn’t think you cared.”

 

“Never stopped you before.”

 

“You never said it was over before.”

 

Alex couldn’t reply. Eventually, they both looked away. 

 

Alex could feel something changing between them, even as they sat there together. Something about this night felt final and it terrified him. This couldn’t be it. 

 

He reached over slowly and gripped Michael’s hand. 

 

“Your messages are the best parts of my holidays.” He admitted softly. “Even when I’ve had a date for Valentine’s Day, my favorite part was always hearing from you.” He leaned forward so he could face Michael better. “I’m sorry I never responded. I didn’t know how.”

 

“I’m a mess.” Alex continued. “Being back here, being around my dad again, it’s messing with me and I don’t really know how to deal with it. But today I had to face the reality of not having you in my life and it was horrible. I hated it. And I don’t want to go through it again. I never want another Valentine’s Day, or any holiday, to go by without you.” 

 

Michael’s face was a masterpiece in conflicting expressions. Alex could see joy rivaling with skepticism, the other man afraid to let himself believe him. It hurt, but Alex understood. He’d been yanking Michael back and forth for over a decade now. The fact that he stood even half of a chance of getting him back was a miracle. 

 

“Alex-” Michael started.

 

“Please? I know I’ve been an asshole and I’ve hurt you and I am so  _ so  _ sorry but give me one more chance. Just give  _ us _ one more chance.” Alex pleaded. 

 

Michael leaned forward and rested his forehead against Alex’s. “I don’t know if I can take this back and forth anymore. But okay. Let’s give this another shot.” 

 

Alex felt his face split open with a wide grin, a mirroring one spreading across Michael’s face. Alex slid a hand into his curls and pulled him in for a frankly terrible kiss, both of them smiling far too wide.

 

\------

 

The next morning, Michael woke up to find Alex gone and his heart plummeted. He sank back into the bed after a quick look around the tiny trailer, determined not to get up today after all, when his hand smacked a piece of paper. He grabbed at it blindly and unfolded it.

 

_ Went for coffee and bagels. Be back soon. _

 

_ P.S. You have the biggest heart of anyone I know and I will forever be thankful for you letting me into it. I love you. _

 

_ Happy Valentine’s Day _

**Author's Note:**

> Come find me on tumblr! Same username


End file.
